How does barefoot training affect a basketball player as opposed to a runner? Running barefoot helps improve running mechanics for those who have a heel-strike:

It allows the foot to flex and absorb shock, says Tony Post, president of Vibram USA, which makes FiveFingers. With thick heels, people lengthen their strides, landing heel-first and letting the shoe absorb the impact of each footfall. You can’t do that barefoot (try it sometime), so your body naturally falls into a shorter stride, landing first on the outside middle or ball of your foot. As you advance your foot rolls inward; the arch flattens and helps absorb the impact; it then springs back up as you lift your foot and push off the ground.

“In a sense the arch is acting like a leaf spring,” says Post.

Barefoot training – doing things like jumping rope, strength training, etc. without shoes – also may help improve balance and ankle stability, which potentially would decrease ankle sprains or help in the rehabilitation of an ankle sprain.